You're a football player. You get hurt—dinged up, or seriously injured. Either on the sideline or back in the locker room, the team doctor comes over to treat you. What's his motivation? To do the best thing for your long-term health? Or to get you back in the game as quickly as possible?

The players seem of a mind about this. An NFLPA study, the results of which were obtained by the Washington Post, finds that the vast majority of players have serious doubts about the care they're provided.

The NFLPA asked its players to gauge on a one to five scale how much they trust their team's medical staff. Seventy-eight percent of respondents said five, meaning they're not satisfied at all. An additional 15 percent said four, and just three percent responded to the question with a one or a two.

"The most troubling aspect of the survey for me is that lack of belief that the doctors are treating them for their players own health, safety and wellness reasons," DeMaurice Smith said.
The entanglements get worse. According to Slate, 23 NFL teams have "official health care providers. (http://www.slate.com/articles/sports/sports_nut/2013/01/nfl_team_doctors_the_problem_with_pro_football_s_m edical_sponsorship_deals.html)" (click the link...worth the read) This is, essentially, a marketing arrangement. A doctor or clinic or hospital pays a team for the right to exclusively provide medical care, and in return can advertise its connection to the team.

Then-Atlanta Falcons team doctor Andrew Bishop told the New York Times in 2004 that he would resign if the team entered a hospital sponsorship deal: "It compromises you as a physician. The perception is that if this individual was so eager to do this he's willing to pay to do it, then he's going to do whatever management wants to keep the job he paid for."http://deadspin.com/5980550/?utm_campaign=socialflow_deadspin_twitter&utm_source=deadspin_twitter&utm_medium=socialflow

disaacks3

01-31-2013, 01:01 PM

Didn't anyone watch Any Given Sunday?

Doctors are paid by the team, whose interests would you expect them to be protecting?

Yankee_In_TX

01-31-2013, 01:04 PM

Didn't anyone watch Any Given Sunday?

Doctors are paid by the team, whose interests would you expect them to be protecting?

That came to my mind when I saw the headline!

Double Barrel

01-31-2013, 01:09 PM

That came to my mind when I saw the headline!

Me, too! Team doctors know what side of their bread gets the butter, and it is a conflict of interest to expect them to make medical decisions that will have a direct negative impact on the team.

You need a neutral third party involved if they really want to strive of true objectivity.

eriadoc

01-31-2013, 01:28 PM

This is one of the reasons I don't trust the NFL on anything they say about concussions or CTE and therefore one of the reasons I sympathize with players of earlier generations. They were not informed of the risks, they were cared for by doctors that had interests aside from the long term health of the players, and they've been hung out to dry, in essence.

The current players are at least starting to get some of the information necessary to make the decision to risk their future mental health.

jaayteetx

01-31-2013, 01:47 PM

Seems like that would be one of the concessions the players would go after in a CBA. Two "team" doctors, one hired by the team and one by the NFLPA and when they don't agree on a diagnosis have some sort of mediation process. Simple enough to me.

HOU-TEX

01-31-2013, 02:19 PM

This is one of the reasons I don't trust the NFL on anything they say about concussions or CTE and therefore one of the reasons I sympathize with players of earlier generations. They were not informed of the risks, they were cared for by doctors that had interests aside from the long term health of the players, and they've been hung out to dry, in essence.

The current players are at least starting to get some of the information necessary to make the decision to risk their future mental health.

Maybe this will help a little?

Andrea Kremer‏@Andrea_Kremer

Just announced re: NFL health & safety issues - next season teams will have unaffiliated neurological consultant on sidelines during games.

Andrea Kremer‏@Andrea_Kremer

NFL announcing neurological consultant on sidelines a role NFLPA has strongly wanted

CloakNNNdagger

01-31-2013, 03:52 PM

Maybe this will help a little?

Andrea Kremer‏@Andrea_Kremer

The NFPA has not exactly worn the white hat in all this. Back in 2010, the NFLPA blocked initial attempts at placing sideline neurologists and implementing the Riddle HITS [Head Impact Telemetry System] and SRS [Sideline Response System] helmet system, because players were worried that they would be yanked against their own assessment that they were "fine." Ridell's system would basically be logging the intensity and frequency of all significant impacts to a player's head during games AND practices. The fact is that this system was accepted by a dozen or so teams, but ultimately nixed by the NFLPA. It wasn't until all the lawsuits and widespread publicity that the NFLPA all of a sudden came to the forefront of the picture, not the least reason being that the NFLPA could potentially face legal liability for traumatic brain injury, for its failure to protect its own membership.

Vinny

01-31-2013, 05:42 PM

Seems like that would be one of the concessions the players would go after in a CBA. Two "team" doctors, one hired by the team and one by the NFLPA and when they don't agree on a diagnosis have some sort of mediation process. Simple enough to me.

We'll call it the Royce White rule.

dtran04

01-31-2013, 08:34 PM

It's gonna be awesome when these neurologists take out players at any sign of trouble. Hell, Schaub would get pulled in about half of the games. He holds his helmet/head every other game after taking a sack.

CloakNNNdagger

01-31-2013, 08:53 PM

The 2-finger test would be much simpler and cheaper....and just as reliable a test as they perform today on the sideline.:chef: